麻豆约拍

Pear and Chicken Curry:

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 400g diced chicken
• 1 red onion
• 70g curry paste
• 20g fresh ginger
• 2 pears
• 400ml coconut milk
• 1 vegetable stock cube
• Handful of fresh coriander

1. Heat a tablespoon of vegetable oil in a pan then add the diced chicken. Cook for 5 minutes until browned then set aside.
2. In the same pan, add a bit more vegetable oil and heat.
3. Add the onions and cook for 5-10 until softened.
4. Peel the ginger using a teaspoon then grate.
5. Top, tail and peel one of the pears then grate.
6. Add the curry paste, grated ginger and pear to the pan then give everything a good mix up.
7. Cook for a few minutes until fragrant then add the chicken and mix well.
8. Mix the vegetable stock with 150ml of boiling water and add to the pan with the coconut milk then stir well.
9. Simmer for 25-30 minutes until the sauce has thickened.
10. Top, tail, peel and chop the remaining pear then add to the pan, stir through and cook for 1 minute.
11. Serve with basmati rice and a handful of fresh coriander.

Poached Pear 'Mummy' Pies:

Ingredients (serves 8)

• 8 pears
• 250g golden caster sugar
• 1 orange
• 1 lemon
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1 tsp allspice
• 1 tsp nutmeg
• 1 tsp ginger
• Enough water to float pears
• 1 sheet puff pastry
• 1 egg
• 16 edible googly eyes

1. Top, tail and peel the pears.
2. In a large pan, add the sugar, zest and juice of the orange and lemon, the cinnamon stick and spices then give everything a stir. Pour in enough enough water so that the pears are floating. Heat gently for 5 minutes stirring regularly until the sugar has melted.
3. Add the pears then let simmer, covered, for 15 minutes.
4. Remove the pears and set aside to cool then sieve the syrup and pour into a sterilised jar to use at a later date (it will be great for your christmas cake, in coffee or poured over ice cream).
5. Heat your oven on to 180C fan/200C and line a baking tray with parchment paper.
6. Roll out the puff pastry sheet then cut into 1cm strips using a pizza cutter or sharp knife.
7. Beat the egg in a mug with a fork.
8. Wrap a strip of pastry round a pear from the bottom then repeat until you have covered the whole fruit. Repeat with the remaining pears and place on the prepared tray.
9. Brush all the exposed pastry with the beaten egg then bake for 25 minutes.
10. Once baked, add the googly eyes between 2 strips of pastry.

Chocolate Ghost Pears:

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 4 pears
• 200g White Chocolate
• 100g Dark Chocolate
• 8 edible googly eyes

1. Break up the white chocolate in one microwave safe bowl and the dark chocolate in another.
2. To melt the chocolate, place each bowl in the microwave for 30 second blasts, stirring between each until smooth.
3. Chop off the bottom of each pear.
4. Dip the bottom third of the pears in the dark chocolate then place on a sheet of parchment paper.
5. Pop in the fridge for 10 minutes.
6. Retrieve the pears then use a spoon to drizzle the white chocolate from the top of the pear to cover them down to the dark chocolate. Add the googly eyes.